


Not Just Happenstance

by bryar6



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: I did alter it some for sake of understanding, Modern AU, Rewritten first episode, Zym is also a human, but having him be a dog was just weirder, company war au, like return him to his mom a dog who just happens to talk, no magic, roadtrip au, some perilous situations, they’re just vibing, tried my best to come up with something different!!, yeah nah
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-07
Updated: 2020-02-07
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:54:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22605808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bryar6/pseuds/bryar6
Summary: Callum, Rayla, and Ezran go on a roadtrip to return a lost child to his family across the country. They meet friend and foe alike along the way, forging unlikely bonds and discovering dark secrets.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	Not Just Happenstance

**Author's Note:**

> This is a modern AU- for the Fanfic contest being run on Instagram by @ rxyllum -where Katolis and Xadia are two warring companies. Tragedy befell them when the head of the Xadia company and his son were killed in a fight, along with Sarai, Harrow’s wife. But everything that has happened may come to change when an assassin from Xadia meets the Princes.

“Callum, I…” Ezran looks at his hands, trailing off. He feels uneasy. Ever since those threats about dad and his company, he’s been worried. There were even rumors that a rival company might be hiring mercenaries, so they’d stepped up the precautions. 

“Yeah, Ez?” Callum turns away from his desk, pushing a mop of messy hair out of his eyes. “Is this about Harrow? I thought we already talked about that just a couple hours ago. Everything will be-” 

“No, it isn’t about Harrow.” He pauses, then meets Callum’s eyes. “You can call him Dad, you know.’’ 

Callum sighs. His actual father...was a part of his past he didn’t want to think about. He’d lost his father, then his mother to a pointless war in another country. He wasn’t sure he was ready to lose another parental figure in his life. Ezran’s dad was his stepfather, and a wonderful man. “Yep. I know. So what’s up, then?”

“Well, you see, I found…” His younger brother looks sheepish. “You can’t tell Dad, or Viren, or Claudia or Soren about this, but there’s a-” 

Before Ezran can finish his sentence, the door snaps open. One of Harrow’s bodyguards steps into their bedroom. “Princes,” he says, addressing them by their last name. “The King would like to see you.” The boys cringe at the use of Harrow’s nickname, something Viren probably gave him when they founded the company years ago. With a shrug and a sigh, they head downstairs through the grand house. 

Callum, personally, isn’t so used to living in an almost palace of a home. He grew up in a middle-class home, good, but not lavish like this. Not that he minds living in a mansion, but it makes him feel out of place. 

Their dad sits at the head of a long table, in an office chair that’s almost throne-like in its size. “Boys.” Harrow says it with a sigh and a pause. “I’m...sending you to the Banther Lodge. I know it’s more than a few states away, and it’s the winter retreat, but...think about it like an early vacation. You’ll take a convoy. Your aunt Amaya will be there. Maybe you can build a dirtman.” 

“Are you coming with us?” Ezran asks, picking up his bullfrog companion, Bait. 

“Ah, no. Unfortunately.” 

Callum is confused. Why would he send them away..? Unless...no, it couldn’t be. Harrow winces at the look of understanding that crosses Callum’s face. 

“It’s okay, Ez. We’ll go. Let’s pack.” 

X

“Ezran, let’s go. If we leave now, we might make it to the lodge by nightfall.” Callum hurriedly shoves sketchbooks and pencils into his backpack, making sure to snatch up his scarf and a change of clothes. _It’ll be okay, _he tells himself. “Ezran?”__

__There’s no reply. Callum scans the room, checks for his brother in the adjacent room, but he’s not there. Callum grumbles under his breath, grabs their things, and starts his search. “Times like these I wish the house wasn’t so big,” he mutters._ _

__Callum calls and calls, and yet, there’s no response. “Where are you? I...I’m sorry about some of the things I said earlier. But we need to go!” At last, he hears footsteps behind him. “Thank the gods. There you…”_ _

__But whoever it is that Callum finds behind him, is not Ezran. Not even close. A tall, white haired girl stands behind him. Her skin is tan, and almost shimmery in the pale light. And a long, curved blade touches the underside of his chin._ _

__The moment would almost be poetic, if it weren’t for the cool metal’s persistent pressure. “Who are you?” she asks. It’s more of a growl, and there’s murder in her eyes._ _

__Callum winces._ This is it, isn’t it?_ “I’m Ezran. Prince.” 

____“Perfect. Now I get to make you pay. It’s only fair. A son for a son.” She smiles coldly as Callum scutters backwards and away from her. “I’m from the company Xadia. You killed Avizandum and killed his only son. Now we just make it even.” Shouts from somewhere deep in the mansion echo back to them. Harrow._ _ _ _

____“I...it’s not my fault! I’m not responsible for what Harrow, or the rest of the Katolis company has done! We can change things! We don’t have to follow in their footsteps.”_ _ _ _

____“Callum?” Ezran’s disembodied voice quietly asks._ _ _ _

____The girl whips around. “Who’s there?”_ _ _ _

____“Callum, is that you?”_ _ _ _

____“Ez, no! Get!” But it’s not enough to dissuade his younger brother, who steps out from behind a painting. There’s clearly a secret passageway there, one that only makes sense his brother would have found._ _ _ _

____“You’re not the right Prince. I want the heir,” seethes the girl._ _ _ _

____In a flurry of movements, Callum jumps up and runs, into the passageway and behind his brother. “We have to go!”_ _ _ _

____Ezran leads the way and they fly through the tunnels, seemingly descending down into some unknown basement of the house. “I have to show you something, Callum!”_ _ _ _

____The assassin is still close on their tail, chasing them down. “We’ll lose her up here!” But it’s a dead end, and Callum is sure their fate is sealed._ _ _ _

____Ezran presses a series of rocks on the wall, whispering under his breath._ _ _ _

____“Hurry!” Callum urges._ _ _ _

____“I’m trying,” his brother says between gritted teeth. Suddenly, a stairway opens in the floor. They race down it, watching it seal behind them. They’re in some strange lab-like room, full of strange, preserved animals. “We’ll be safe here. It took me months to figure out the pattern.”_ _ _ _

____As if he’d jynxed his words, the stairs grated and began to spiral down again._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____“How did you figure it out?” Ezran says incredulously, watching the girl step down._ _ _ _

____“I just followed the jelly handprints,” she says. Callum is momentarily stunned by her. There was something about her… “Now, stay right where you are and we can make this quick and easy.”_ _ _ _

____ _ _

____“Wait! I need to show you something,” Ezran exclaims. He moves to a cradle in the back of the room and takes hold of the cloth covering it. “It’s important.”_ _ _ _

____“Slowly now,” the girl whispers, pointing her blade out at the young Prince. Callum notes her unusual choice of weapon, when there were much more efficient ones available in the modern day._ _ _ _

____Ezran draws the blanket off, and there lies a quiet, sleeping baby. It’s the son of Avizandum. The one that both companies had thought dead, just like his father. The baby’s pale, almost white skin seems to glow in the warm candlelight._ _ _ _

____Callum and the girl gasp. Ezran smiles serenely._ _ _ _

____“This...changes everything,” she breathes, meeting Callum’s eyes. He feels a strange spark in his chest, like this is the start of something unimaginable._ _ _ _

**Author's Note:**

> If you want, I will add more chapters to this AU. Hope you liked it!


End file.
